A Friend in Need
by leveragus
Summary: Fic for Leverageland heist#5. An old Leverage friend returns needing the team's help.


**A/N** :Fic for Leverageland heist#5. Challenge 06-Tv Tropin'. Mine was Open Sesame.

**A Friend in Need.**

It was a late night at the McRory's pub. Everyone had gone home, everyone except for the well-known band of thieves. The team had just returned from their latest job and was now sharing a quiet meal together at their usual table.

"Did you see how that boat exploded?" Parker was thrilled

"Yes, I saw it Parker" grumbled Eliot " I was standing right next to it! My ears are still ringing!"

"Oh, you do complain!" nagged Parker

"I wouldn't be complaining if someone had done is job properly and checked the security camera."

"Hey, man. You know how many things I had to do at the same time. Check the police radios, Nate had me keeping Sophie line secure, then there were like a dozens of other security cameras, keep track of the mark's GPS…" Hardison rambled.

"Yeah, Yeah, you're the only one who does all the work around here" Eliot waved him off.

"I'm just saying that nobody appreciates the work I do"

"I'll show you…" Eliot threaten him.

"Guys, guys please" Nate tried to calm them down "Let's just celebrate on another job well done"

"I think we need a vacation." Sophie intervened "It's been a full month, a week of holiday will do us good."

"I agree" Hardison raised his hand. There was a Star Trek convention that he wanted to attend.

"Me too" Parker soon joined.

"Me three"

Nate looked at his teammates all waiting eagerly for his approval.

He sighed. " Well it looks like we're going on vacation!"

Suddenly the door behind them opened and a blond woman stumbled inside the pub.

Eliot was quick on his feet, his guard high.

Sophie recognized the woman "Tara" and rushed to her friends side. Eliot soon followed and helped her lifting up the grifter and they both brought her to a booth chair.

"Hardison, get the medical kit, quick" The Hitter order.

Tara Cole was in a bad shape. Her left hand was on her right side covering a bleeding wound, her lip was split and she had scratches on her neck.

"I think our vacation just got postponed" exclaimed Parker from the back of the room.

"Tara, what happened to you?" Sophie asked worriedly.

"Sophie?" she looked disoriented.

Nate brought a glass of water to her lips. "Here, drink this."

Tara slowly drank the fresh water, her dry throat finding relief. "Thanks"

With Hardison finally returning with the first aid kit, Eliot worked on her wounds.

"This might hurt a bit" he warned.

"So, what happened?" This time it was Nate who asked.

" A con gone wrong" She winced when Eliot cleaned her wound. "I have been in Boston for the last five days trying to con John Price"

"Wait a minute?" the hacker interrupter incredulously. " **THE** John Price?"

"Who's John Price?" asked Parker still eating her meal. Cold pasta was not good.

"Only one of the richest and most powerful people in Boston."

"Why haven't we heard of him before?" Sophie inquired "I bet his activities are not exactly legal."

"You're right about that." Nate sat on a chair. " He's on our list, but we still haven't crossed paths. Let's say he's thorough in keeping his affairs clean and it's difficult to find something on him"

"Like it was difficult for me to make contact with him" Tara took a deep breath as Eliot stitched the wound.

"Why didn't you call us? We could have helped"

Tara looked at her long time friend. "I thought I could do this alone. Plus I didn't have a choice. It's already a risk for me being here."

"What do you mean?" Nate was worried. John Price was not an easy target, but having an unknown enemy as well was suicide.

"I received an anonymous call a week ago saying that I had to get a file from John Price's safe. They threaten my life. At first I didn't take it seriously until my car exploded right in front of me."

"Cool, some other explosions!"

"Parker," Sophie told her off. " And then?"

"They sent me an e-mail with all the details. Price's building schematics, how to make contact with him, how to deliver the package to them… except for one small detail, how to open his safe! Of course it was a voice activated safe and one of the latest models. The alarm went off, the guards saw me and I barely made it out alive"

"Hardison?"

"Already working on it, Nate, I'll have something specific by morning."

"Nate," Sophie put a hand on his arm "We're going to help, right? Tara is blown, so it's up to us ."

"Yeah, of course" he reassured her. "When's the dead line?"

"In two days"

"So I better come up with a plan, and fast."

"Am I the only one who thinks this is crazy?" Eliot had a bad feeling about it. "We can't con this man in two days. It's impossible!"

"We've got no choice, we have to find an entrance."

"And I've found one" Hardison interrupted working on his IPAD. "His hosting a charity party at his building tomorrow night. It's going to be easy for me to get us an invitation. The hard part it's reaching his office and opening his safe."

"Puff, leave the safe to me!" Parker exclaimed like it was no big deal.

"It's a voice activated safe, Parker, you'll need my help too."

"Does Eliot have to dress like a waiter again?" She asked curiously.

"Oh, no. I'm no waiter!"

"Guys, leave the planning to me. I'll work on it." Nate got up.

"We'll work on it" Sophie glared at him emphasizing on the "we".

"Right, " He looked uneasy. He was still not very comfortable with this sharing power.

"Tara, you can stay at my apartment until the job is over." Sophie offered. "I'll be staying here"

Tara looked between Nate and Sophie and smiled "About time you two!"

Nate was pacing next to the video monitors.

"Sophie" he shouted from downstairs. "Are you ready? We're going to be late." He was very nervous about this con. He didn't like short cons.

"I'm here" Sophie walked slowly down the stairs. She was wearing a long blue electric bare shoulder dress, blue high heels and her hair was impeccable like her make-up.

"Wow" Nate was speechless. "You're gorgeous."

"Thanks," smiling she stopped next to him, placed a hand on his chest and gave him a quick kiss. "You're not bad yourself." She was checking him out. The tuxedo looked too good on him.

"Do I have to keep an eye on you too this evening? Chase off some rich men?"

She chuckled. "You've got enough to worry about"

Hardison came through the door abruptly soon followed by the rest of the team and Tara.

"Have you two done flirting?" he asked without looking up from his computer.

Nate ignored him. "Remember all, this is a low key con. None of us has to make contact with John Price. I don't want to blow us if we decide to go after him in the future."

"How are we going to record his voice without talking to him?" asked Eliot. He too was dress in a tuxedo to infiltrate the party.

"Thanks to me and my genius" Hardison smirked. "You, Nate and Sophie need to stay in about 2 meters area from Price. You will all have this" He handed them a mobile phone. "They will triangulate a signal and pick up Price voice. Then my program will collect and analyze his voice tones and sounds until it can crack the safe code."

"And I will have this to open the safe." Parker showed him another device. "I've analyzed Tara's schematics and the best way for me to get into the building is repelling from the roof top and go through the window."

"How surprising!" Eliot exclaimed. She smiled.

"What about me?" Tara asked. This was her mission and she was feeling a bit left out.

"You're going to stay in the van with Hardison. We can't risk Price or his men seeing you"

"The van?" She grimaced. "But it stinks!"

"Hey, my van doesn't stink" Hardison retorted offended. "It's new. Plus I've added an air vent"

Nate checked his watched. "OK, we'll better go. Let's go steal us a voice!"

"Hardison, how is it going?" Nate whispered in his com.

"We're more than half way through, the program still needs to detected some sound."

"It's been too long. We've already been here 45 minutes. The more we stay here, the more risky it's going to get." He looked around worried "Eliot!" He called his hitter. "Eliot!"

"What?" he answered angrily. "I'm hitting on a girl here."

"We're not here to flirt. Something is wrong with the guards, they seem on alert. Check it out, please?"

"Yeah, sure!" He agreed but he wasn't too happy about it!

"Parker, is everything okay at your end?"

"Yeah, just really bored" She wandered around Price's office. "Can I try to open the safe without Hardison?"

"No," Nate stopped her "Please, try to be patient"

"Nate," came Sophie's voice. "Do you need me to intervene? I can try to get him to say the missing sounds." She was discretely whispering behind a flute of champagne.

"I really don't want us to make contact, but it's taking too long"

"Nate, wait" said Hardison "It's done. Parker, I'm transferring the code to you. Just press play on your device and it will open"

Parker did as instructed and the safe opened in front of her eyes.

A big grin spread on her face. "Open Sesame"

Her hand went to pick up the files in it. Her smile soon disappeared when the alarm went off.

"Laser beams inside a safe!" she exclaimed angrily.

"Parker, get out of there!" Hardison shouted in her com.

In the ballroom Nate gave Sophie a nod indicating her to get out of there. Sophie didn't need to be told twice. With quick but discreet moves she was out of the room.

Nate soon followed her, but a voice stopped him

"Nathan Ford" He turned around to come face to face with John Price. "How gracious of you to be here even if not invited" The man was smiling and Nate had bad feeling.

"Well, you know, how could I miss it."

"Of course my office alarm going off had nothing to do with you."

"Maybe it's just your poor security."

"Funny" He gave a nod to two of his men. Nate felt the barrel of a gun against his back.

"Take him out of here and get some information out of him. If any member of his team comes after him shoot them. Well, Mister Ford is being a pleasure, but I probably won't be seeing you again" He walked off as the two big men pushed Nate outside, they walked through a yard and went inside a dark room. The first punch to his face was unexpected, but the second one to his stomach wasn't. It didn't mean that it hurt any less. Nate groaned, his body bent holding his abdomen.

"Nate, I'm coming" Eliot reassured him.

Nate knew he had no chance against the two guards, but he had to buy some time for Eliot so he took a swing with his right arm and hit one of them. Unfortunately the other one just had to shoot him.

"Nate" He heard Sophie screaming in his earpiece.

"I'm fine," he whispered to her, except for the excruciating pain on his right shoulder.

That's when he saw Eliot coming through the door.

"Why don't you try that with me?" and Eliot punched the guy on his left.

One punch, two punches and the first his disarmed. One kick, another punch, elbow hit and the second guy is disarmed too. One back kick, whops, one hit (that hurt), a combination of punch- kick –shove- punch, the first guard his down.

"Now you!" He indicated the other one. Punch- kick- punch and head hit and the second guard is down.

Eliot helped Nate getting up. "Let's go before the other guards come"

They ran though the yard and passed the gate where there was Hardison's van waiting for them.

"Go, go" Eliot shouted once there were inside.

"Where's Parker?" Nate asked out of breath.

"Right here!" She appeared behind him.

"How did you get out of there?"

"Same way I got in" She said like it was obvious "Instead of searching for the right file, I Just took everything" And from behind she produced a big packages of files. "And by the way, you're bleeding!"

"Yeah, that happens when you get shot!" he moaned. Now that the rush of adrenaline was over, he was really in pain.

"Nate!" Sophie yell at him. "You said you were fine!" she picked up a piece of cloth she had found and put pressure on the gunshot wound.

"Ouch," he groaned "I say not being dead can be qualified as fine. Parker, let me get this straight, you got everything that was inside the safe?"

She nodded "Yep, all of it!"

"That means we can go after Price sooner than we thought. I must read what's in those files."

"No," Sophie stopped him "what you need now is to lay down on your bed and have Eliot look at that shoulder."

After a couple of hours they all sat around the kitchen table. Eliot patched Nate's shoulder and the mastermind was now painless thanks to morphine.

They were all looking through the files .

"These are the files they've asked me for" Tara pulled out some documents.

"Oh, you don't need them" Nate said not stopping reading his file. "Wow, this stuff is good!"

"What do you mean I don't need them? Do you remember they threaten my life!" Tara was shocked.

"Hardison took care of it."

The hacker smiled pleased. "I traced the call from your cell phone and once I had identified who they were I tipped off our FBI agents friends"

"McSweeten" Parker exclaimed happily.

"When did all this happen?" Tara was still shocked.

"Today" Nate answered.

"Age of the geek, babe"

"Why didn't you tell me? And why am I still here?"

" I thought you might have wanted to help us take Price down" Nate grinned knowingly.

Tara smiled "Okay, let's do it!"

They were all ready for revenge.

"Does this mean no vacation?"

"Parker!"

THE END


End file.
